Kerry-Feingold submit resolution re backup plans for Voting Machines

[blm]

Looks like we are getting a crew of Senators who are taking the issue seriously. This is a new beginning for democracy - a new CHANCE to save it.

Couldn't have happened without all of you working tirelessly since 2002 to bring more people to the importance of this issue. Loving you all.


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – September 27, 2006

Contact: Zach Lowe (Feingold) - [phone]

Liz Richardson (Kerry) – [phone]



FEINGOLD, KERRY INTRODUCE RESOLUTION URGING BACKUP PLANS FOR VOTING MACHINES

Difficulties with Recent Primary Elections Highlight Need for Back-Up Systems Like Paper Ballots



Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senators Russ Feingold (D-WI) and John Kerry (D-MA) have introduced a resolution calling on state and local governments to have back-up systems in place on election day to ensure that every eligible voter who wants to vote is able to. The Senators’ Sense of the Senate resolution notes the difficulties that voters in many states have experienced with new voting technology and urges states to do whatever is necessary to ensure that voters are actually able to cast a vote on November 7, 2006, including providing emergency paper ballots in the event of a voting machine failure.



“We cannot allow the American people to lose faith in the most fundamental aspect of our democratic system – the right to vote,” Feingold said. “Some of the problems we saw this year, like voters in Maryland being told to come back later because the machines weren’t working, are simply unacceptable. A back-up plan as simple as having emergency paper ballots on hand is essential to preventing election day disasters.”



Kerry said, “It’s a disgrace that a Congress and an Administration which talks about exporting democracy around the world ignores the challenges of our own democracy right here at home. We have seen American citizens disenfranchised in our elections for the simple reason that no effective back up system was in place. That’s a national scandal. But here we are, 42 days away from another election, and Congress has again dragged its feet even after we mobilized 35,000 citizens to demand a hearing for our Count Every Vote Act, even after what we saw just this month in Montgomery County. We need emergency action now. That is why I am co-sponsoring the Dodd-Boxer legislation to provide emergency paper ballots and that is why Russ Feingold and I are introducing our resolution today demanding election day back-up plans. We have a duty to ensure that no citizen will be denied the right to vote in 2006.”



Feingold and Kerry are also co-sponsoring legislation with Senators Barbara Boxer (D-CA) and Christopher Dodd (D-CT) to help states make paper ballots available in case of election day problems with electronic voting machines. Feingold and Kerry introduced the resolution ahead of Congress’ adjournment for the 2006 elections. With the problems some voters have already experienced during primary elections this year, the senators believe the Senate should be on record supporting state efforts to be prepared in the event of problems on Election Day. Earlier this month, problems with new voting technology were reported in a number of primaries around the country.

[TayTay]

1. Thank you Sens. Feingold, Boxer, Dodd and Kerry

This is very good news.

[blm]

2. I'd like to believe that a few more senators are ready to engage on this

issue. I'm looking to Kennedy, Durbin and Leahy to come on next.

[Kurovski]

3. K&R.(nt)

[truedelphi]

4. USCOUNTVOTES (Kathy Dopp's organization)

Pointed out that in the Ohio exit polls, Nov 2004
it was easy to figure out what went wrong -
Paper ballot -0.9% variance from the exit polls (that is, less than one per cent)
Mechanical voting machine -10.3% variance from the exit polls
Touch screen -7.0% variance from the exit polls
Punch cards -7.3% variance from the exit polls
Optical scan -5.5 variance from the exit polls

The ONLY winner in the democracy contest at the polling place is the paper ballots

And these have to be real, hand counted paper ballots, not like those paper ballots here in California that end up getting counted by the OptiScan machines

[mom cat]

5. Thanks for these stats! That is a good piece to send to congress critters.

:bounce:

[truedelphi]

6. Yr welcome But Could you email Kathy hrself the thanx?

She is at [e-mail]

Sitting around counting the count can get mighty damn weary and might damn lonely.

Plus it goes without saying that the renumerationisn't so hot either

[Febble]

9. Well, I think the take-home message

isn't what you might think, unfortunately. The key variable is the size of the community served, not the technology used, although the data do suggest that residual vote rates on older technology in large urban areas might have contributed to the effect.

[truedelphi]

10. BUT IN THE GULDARN Larger

sense the ONLY way that the electorate is going to have its power at the polls returned to it
Is to have the ballots be paper. And the process to be transperent

Those of us who are NOT statistics experts cannot trust in the process unless the ballots are
1) verifiable - not owned by companies demanding "Propietary" rights to our election info
2) Uncomplicated -
a) complications from having machineery now includes how the machinery needs to be overnighted with the election workers -not a process designed to allow for trust
b) who in the world can possible untangle every line of code in every differnt system? -
even knowledgeable computer programmers simply do not have the eternity of time required
3) Inexpensive, and requiring only simple rudimentary abilities

What does Canada know that we do not? They have a healthier happier population due to national health care.
And their country does the entire voting procedure on paper, with election results within ten days.

Sure we are larger, but we can just break the system down into manageable bits.

We also need for the electorate to realize that what is happening in the USA is happening because the Chief Election workers are almost all Republicans. They may say they are Dems or Independents, but they are as uncaring about the situation as those who label themselves Republicans.

[Febble]

11. Oh, I completely agree

and I think this initiative is terrific. Ballots need to be paper, because paper is the only record that can be verified by the voter AND independently counted. And, what just as important, paper is quick and cheap and plentiful. If the machines don't work (and they won't, in many places) then a quick cheap and plentiful and valid option needs to be made available.

But I do think that it is worth making good arguments for a good case, not bad ones, and I don't think these stats tell anyone anything about why paper ballots should be provided in case of machine problems.

Arguments with holes in them are fine for preaching to the choir, but if you are trying to convince people whose instinct is to do nothing, I see no point in offering them an excuse to do nothing. And offering easily refutable arguments is a great way to give someone an excuse to do nothing.

[blm]

13. Canadians aren't told by the media that they NEED instant results for

everything. Hell - American Idol voters wait longer than our election voters, because that is how the media planned it.

[truedelphi]

12. Hmmm. Although what you are saying is true,

Would there not be another nation with paper ballots where there are
exit poll research to look at? Canada? Ireland?

And shouldn't we be looking at the factors, all the factors, that lead to small communities inside USA having a more honest report. So that we can put those factors into effect in larger communities

I remember Bev Harris of Black Box Voting stating on the radio that the communities in New England where there were still paper ballots showed Howard Dean victorious over John Kerry in the primaries - and that Kerry mysteriously won in the areas where he was expected to lose, if the community had upgraded to machines. (those who follow my posts know there is bad blood between me and Ms Harris - However I am usually confident of her work - what IO am not confident of is whether when she claims to have done the work, she is often taking credit for something that someone else did.)

[blm]

7. That's where I am at: Paper ballots. Hand counts. Videocameras trained on

every precinct counting the ballots.

How simple and how affordable can you get?

[Febble]

8. Where do these

figures come from?

There were only two kinds of voting method used in NEP precincts in Ohio, DREs and punchcards. So these figures do not apply to Ohio.

I assume that they are from the Edison-Mitofsky report for the nationwide sample. In which case I would say that when paper ballot precincts were compared with similar precincts (i.e. precincts serving comparably sized communities) there was no statistically significant difference between paper and any other technology. There were only 40 paper ballot precincts in the sample, and they were almost all in rural areas.

However, when technology was compared in large urban areas, there was a significant difference between older technology and digital technology - and in fact, as you see from even your table, it was precincts that had the older technology that had greater discrepancy. However, this includes all the New York precincts (levers) so it is not clear that technology was the primary factor. Nonetheless, it may indicate that at least some of the discrepancy was due to higher residual Democratic vote rates in precincts using older technology. It doesn't particularly support the case that that miscounts were higher on DREs or optical scanners.

My two pence.

on edit

Oops got my threads confused. Third paragraph belongs to eridani's thread.